Green Bay’s Donald Driver celebrates with fans after catching a touchdown pass during the second half of the Packers’ victory over the Chicago Bears on Thursday, Sept. 13, 2012, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

GREEN BAY, Wis. — By January, it got awkward between Donald Driver and the Green Bay Packers. Really awkward. There wasn’t a spot for him on the roster anymore.

No, the Packers will not miss him in the short term. But over the long haul, they will. Any team would.

With Driver, there has always been an aura. He was the face of the franchise, the one who drew your Aunt Bernice to the game. And in house, Driver was the soul of the team. Green Bay could count on No. 80. In the locker room. On third down. During the playoffs. Somehow, there was a shake, a shimmy, a first down and seven seasons of 1,000 yards.

Driver was all heart and guts. The 38-year-old Driver is not easily replaceable.

On paper, the offense will survive. Randall Cobb, James Jones and Jordy Nelson probably form the best trio in the NFC. But Driver’s longevity was special, rare. Since 1999, he’s been death-and-taxes consistent. He braved through injuries, he fought off competition and he did it for fourteen seasons.

Can another receiver go 14? 10? Over time, Green Bay is going to miss Driver. Such wide receivers are needles in the NFL draft haystack.

Receivers have come and gone since Driver was drafted during the Bill Clinton administration. Within the division — through Green Bay’s sustained reign — Chicago, Minnesota and Detroit have all struggled to find such a bulletproof receiver.

The Chicago Bears have drafted 19 wide receivers since Driver went 213th overall in ’99. All 19 fell far, far short of Driver. The Detroit Lions have taken 11, including three consecutive, epic, franchise-decomposing busts. The Minnesota Vikings struck gold with Randy Moss in 1998, but even this future Hall of Famer didn’t last long. Thirteen picks never netted anything close to a Driver.

Now, general manager Ted Thompson and his scouts must ramp up the hunt on for another Driver — another receiver who’ll last. From living in a U-Haul truck during his childhood to the obscurity at Alcorn State, Driver entered the NFL with a unique perspective of survival.

Considering Greg Jennings is likely a goner, too, Green Bay could use a receiver. Jarrett Boykin and Jeremy Ross both have potential, but during this off-season, Green Bay should keep the Driver blueprint in mind. Somewhere, maybe there’s another Driver.

There is no memorable lasting image. Driver didn’t leave with a bang, high-stepping his way into the Lambeau Field end zone one final time. Instead, he was in a dark winter jacket. Right there with the likes of Jordan Miller and Frank Zombo, Driver was a healthy scratch for his last home game. It was — to put it mildly — embarrassing.

You can’t blame Mike McCarthy. There was no longer any room for an aging receiver.

But wait. There was one lasting image, and this one epitomized Driver as much as the 90-yard touchdown in the 2007 NFC Championship Game or the 61-yarder through a maze of San Francisco arms in 2010 (when Driver was battling food poisoning).

With his time in Green Bay dwindling, Driver asked to play special teams. Such a request is beneath most receivers. The position inherently breeds egomaniacs. But that’s why Driver was always different. After 743 receptions for 10,137 yards and 61 touchdowns — numbers that would blind most receivers to reality — Driver wanted to play on the punt return unit.

The sight of Shawn Slocum guiding Driver into the right position inside the Don Hutson Center was strange. And then it wasn’t. This is why Driver is so revered. This is why hundreds of fans braved sub-zero temperatures for tickets to Driver’s retirement ceremony.

People appreciated what Driver stood for. He wasn’t Terrell Owens or Randy Moss, blessed with supreme physical gifts and a loud mouth. He was different, he was Wisconsin.

No question, through football osmosis, Cobb, Nelson and Jones all seem to have a piece of Driver in them. That’s the culture Edgar Bennett describes in the meeting room. The position coach says there’s a singular hunger to block downfield, to go across the middle, to never stay complacent.

The Packers will now see just how strong that resolve is.

Driver is gone for good.

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